It seems like we had just barely got started, but the year at city council comes to an end with one last meeting for 2022. This meeting. On the agenda presently are three items, an endorsement, a request for funds, and an update about the City of Guelph’s efforts to be more customer friendly. Let’s tackle the issues one last time before a nice holiday break!
NOTE #1: Delegates will be able to appear at this meeting in-person or via tele-presense but you do have to register with the clerks office before 10 am on Friday December 9. You can also submit written delegations and correspondences for agenda items.
NOTE #2: In addition to meeting in-person, this meeting will also be live-streamed on the City of Guelph’s website here.
Alectra Convergent Development LP Battery Energy Storage Project Proposal – Guelph’s utility provider is asking council to support their new project, a battery energy storage system or BESS, which are rechargeable batteries that can store energy from different sources or during off-peak hours and discharge it when needed. The site the Bess will be installed at is the Arlen Transformer Station on Clair Road, and according to Alectra is will have “multiple benefits” including financial benefits, increased electrical system reliability and resiliency, jobs and economic development, and environmental benefits.
County of Wellington Request: Drop-In Hours in Downtown Guelph – As previously reported, Wellington County’s social services committee identified a gap in available services as one of the urgent needs in the downtown core. Royal City Mission is open from 12 pm and 8 pm, but there’s a four-hour gap between the time when shelters close at 8 am and when the Mission opens.
The request is simple: take $250,850 from the Tax Rate Operating Contingency Reserve so that services can be extended to 8 am at Royal City Mission starting on January 1, 2023. The City also requests progress reports in May and September while they refer any further requests for shelter services to the 2024-27 budget process.
Service Simplified Progress Report: Implementing Guelph’s Customer Service Strategy – City council will hear an update on the implementation for the four-year customer service strategy; what’s been accomplished in 2022, and what’s coming next in next three years.
This year, the City has implemented new service standards and accompanying employee training, plus standardized customer satisfaction measurement, improved digital services, and the centralizating of customer service functions in solid waste. Coming up next? Centralizing customer contacts, creating a service-focused website, and resolving 50-60 per cent of inquiries at the first interaction. There are no additional recommendations for council’s consideration from the report, so council will only vote to receive the report.
Guelph Politico 